Life After Coffee

When I first started this book, the plot seemed a little improbable to me. Actually, that didn't change much--there were improbable things throughout the book--but it did finally get better, and the main character became a little more likable. That's not a must for me, but I do enjoy having someone I'm rooting for. I thought at first it would be the husband, but he was a flake; the kids weren't likable; and since the main character (let's call her MC) didn't really have any friends, non of them were, either. So, improbable thing #1: This amazing, bright, capable woman--let's call the main character MC--who travels the world suddenly loses her job and has to be a mom. Apparently, although she loved her kids to tears when she had to leave them, she had seemingly never (and I mean never) spent ANY time with them in five years. Their behavior and personalities were completely foreign to her, as was any trace of domesticity. Really? Yes, she was gone to deep coffee jungles for weeks and months at a time, but when she was home, did she never spend two minutes with her family? Didn't appear to be the case. Even the worse workaholic corporate spouse was a role model compared to her in this book. And she did have a functioning brain; where did that go? Improbable thing #2: MC's husband is the stay-at-home dad during MC's working years. He is the picture of perfect--takes care of all the kids' needs, fixes them amazing meals, keeps the house as tidy as can be, takes care of the scheduling, finances, etc. Yet the minute that wife loses her job, he is literally out the door to work on his screenplay ALL DAY and then some. Not to go job hunting, not to take a part-time job while he also works on his dream, but just to sit in a coffee shop and cruise the internet and work on his writing. Never once does it appear to cross his mind that the bank account, which he managed prior to this, is dwindling, and within the year, they are heading to bankruptcy. He never lifts another finger around the house, and doesn't seem to even notice that his new domestic goddess has apparently lost every brain cell she ever had and the kids are a mess. Was he faking it prior to this? Improbable thing #3: Prior to MC returning to household duties, the kids and husband had an active social life. Gone overnight. This attractive, smart, happily married (really?) couple have not one friend in the world. Improbable things #4, 5, and 6: Hubby imposes upon his wife to contact her ex-boyfriend, a successful producer, to get him a job. They haven't spoken since the split, but he immediately gives the hubby a chance, which hubby almost immediately torpedos. She maintains her trainwreck status, but is somehow still attractive to the rich and powerful ex, who tries to break them up and flies her off to Barbados with him. Interestingly enough, this is when the story actually became one that I wanted to read. So. if you can make it through the first 85% of improbable, you'll probably like the ending and wish that is where the story began.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the a free electronic ARC of this book!

Amy O'Hara is a buyer for a company in the coffee industry. Seeing how she is forced to travel all the time, there is no point in her trying to focus on finding a work-life balance. She has none to speak of because she leaves her two children with her husband back at home, in Los Angeles, while she consistently searches for the perfect coffee bean, the one that can save them all from extinction. Just when she is about to make this discovery, she gets sacked. That's when she finds out that her family life isn't all fun and games, and that she will have to make a commitment and spend considerably more time with the kids and with her spouse, at least for the time being. All of the sudden, she finds herself at the mercy of her children, one of whom is a needy toddler and the other is trying to cope with his behavioral issues. Both Billy and Violet have suffered a great deal due to the constant absence of their mother, and that can be seen in the way they interact with the people around them, be they individuals they meet in the street or other kids of their age they come in contact with at kindergarten... Read more: [...]

I want to thank NetGalley for letting me read this book. I liked the title and the premise of the story.

If you are under 45 this may be the book for you. Being a child of the 60s and the era of bra-burning, I was excited to see a book about a reversal of roles. Stay-at-home dad, mom travels for a high paying job. But I didn't much like the characters. The dad seems the abandon the parenting job when the wife needs him to step up. She is left floundering with a couple young children after losing her job. She makes a lot of bad choices while her husband won't see that his 'back-up-plan' won't keep the family feed.

Look, I am glad we are in an era where this kind of story can be told and most of the reviewers LOVE it. The feminist in me is SO happy. But the humanist in me is still not satisfied with most of this story. I do love that the author researched about the finding and securing good coffee for the Starbuck's obsessed. But for me, a tea-drinker, the story ended where I wanted it to start.

Still, I am giving this four stars for being modern and different. But YOU may just LOVE it.

I enjoyed this story about a working mom who unexpectedly looses her job. This isn't goo because she is the family breadwinner. On top of this happening, she finds out she is not the perfect parent and doesn't really know her kids. The story continues on with her growing as a mom and trying to find a job to pull her family from being on the streets. She isn't a perfect person but she is likeable. The ending isn't the perfect happy ending after you are expecting. Despite that, it was worth reading to the end.

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Talk about laugh out loud funny. Amy is a true career woman and her husband Peter is the stay at home Dad. He is supposed to working towards becoming a screenwriter, but he isn't that successful. Then comes the big layoff for Amy. Now the roles are reversed and chaos ensues. Amy is trying her best to take care of the kids, but she has no idea what she is doing. On top Peter can't find anyone interested in his writings. This book was so charming, funny, and completely relatable. It was a extremely fun read.

Terrific! Try this one for a well written tale of a woman learning to cope with a major change in her life. Being Mom is a lot tougher than Amy thought and I liked that Franken did not take sides in the Mommy wars. Amy is the financial provider for her family- you'll learn a little about the coffee business (very interesting). My only quibble was her initial (but not her ultimate) choice vis a vis Matt. Loved Billy, who is more complicated that you'll initially think. THanks to Netgalley for the ARC- two thumbs up and I'm looking forward to more from Franken.

The story line was Fresh and different. It kept my interest most of the time, but I felt like the author stretched out the details too often. I found myself skip-reading to get through the explanation of why her pajama bottoms were well worn.. I would have given it a higher rating of the GD & F words would have been left out. Not enjoyable for my reading pleasure.

I greatly enjoyed this first offering by Virginia Franken! Though I'm not a mom, I still relate to the themes regarding the unfair and unrealistic expectations people place on women, and women place on themselves, to be perfect in both their professional and family life. Amy's navigation into rediscovering her family and herself is a journey with which we can all relate.

Amy's story evolved naturally, the progression didn't feel rushed, and the ending was not one of those super happy conclusions everyone comes to expect. The book is realistic and honest and funny.

I thought in the beginning the author has something very special, by the end I knew it and you will too the moment you pick up Life After Coffee!

There were moments I genuinely hated the protagonist for being a self righteous know it all when her life was so messed up. But I'm glad it ended with her doing what I thought she should've done all along. It was a good story and I'd like to see this turned into a Netflix movie.

Well...I normally do not write reviews, (because I am terrible at writing them) but this story was just SO REAL that I had to let you all know that you should definitely be reading this book. I felt like the author took a page out of my life....I mean, this could be about YOU. A very funny look at real life... being a Mom, having a career, and the struggles of marriage. I could not put it down and read it in just about four days. I was very sad to finish the book because I will miss the characters.Life After Coffee

Great book. Held my attention wondering what would be going on next and would she learn to be a mom or head back to Africa. I didn’t see how she could put up with a husband like Peter. Could he get his self straightened out ever? Lots of growing up by both. I enjoyed this book.

I totally relate!!! I loved this book and read it in one sitting. Virginia Franken knows her stuff - coffee and parenting! Her lead character, Amy, is thrust into being Mom, when all she wants to do is search for rust-resistant coffee beans in the depths of an Ethiopian forest, and quickly gets overwhelmed. This fantastic novel says all the things we as Mum's are thinking but don't quite dare say about the traumas of parenting! The story has so many twists and turns I had no idea where it would go next which made it a great read.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!! Can't wait for Virginia Franken's next novel!

I liked this book. I liked the main character--which is always a plus. I liked the storyline, and ending, which could have gone a few different ways. It does get wordy, and there are several "screwball" situations that don't ring true. I'd like to know more about their adventures going forward.

I really enjoyed this book. Virginia brings her characters to life. All of the situations that Amy and Peter encounter are very believable. Amy is hilarious and gets into some funny, embarrassing situations. It is a fun and heartwarming story. Some language but not in a vulgar way.

This book was amazing. The plot line makes you want to keeping reading until the end, and the characters are actually interesting and relatable. If you’re a modern parent dealing with family and work or a fan of coffee you’ll like this book.

The story was actually pretty good. You sympathize pretty well with the career mom, who realizes what she's missing out on. Besides, I love coffee, too!! I disliked the language that was used to write, though. Could have been a stellar story if not for that.

This was an entertaining, believable story. It was a bit of a downer in spots, but quite a positive ending. I enjoyed the information about the coffee industry and found the main character mostly relatable.

This book was super relatable and inspiring. It taught me a lot about society’s expectations about woman and especially how people view working mothers. It made me feel less alone as a woman who will one day have a career of my own and one day my own children as well. This novel is a good read for, not just the working moms out there but for any woman in today’s society.

This was an entertaining, believable story. It was a bit of a downer in spots, but quite a positive ending. I enjoyed the information about the coffee industry and found the main character mostly relatable.

This book was super relatable and inspiring. It taught me a lot about society’s expectations about woman and especially how people view working mothers. It made me feel less alone as a woman who will one day have a career of my own and one day my own children as well. This novel is a good read for, not just the working moms out there but for any woman in today’s society.

Wanted to read something different in terms of my usual non-fiction/mystery/detective reads. Not a romance reader. Like humor + character rich stories. This one fit the bill. Strong female role. (kid characters behavior too much) loved the coffee plot it certainly unusual backdrop theme add to the "ordered confusion" what the neck is going to happen next. 4 stars because personally, for me the author over did the children's insulting behavior to point of derailing the humour flowing through the varies scenarios. Other than that it is good fun read.

Interesting fictional story about working moms, relationships, and parenting.
The characters are relatable. The story ends in a somewhat predictable manner but that's not a bad thing. Good read to escape

I was equally terrorized and entertained by Life After Coffee. Franken takes a real life problem (losing job, can't provide for family) and uses it for the starting point of a hilarious roller coaster ride towards a solution. I laughed and cringed at our heroine Amy's trials as a mother and wife. The book rides the fine line of reality vs caricature with aplomb. Really loved this story and hated to see it end The ending however, is as uplifting as we could wish.

I started reading and couldn't stop. The first-person narrative drew me in to the world of this believable, imperfect woman and mom with a self-deprecating sense of humor as she struggles to balance her life. While there were some scripted moments, overall there were many realities that women face in this world.

I gave this story 4 stars for capturing the struggle modern mothers wrestle with in finding a life/work balance.

The only thing I didn't enjoy was that it felt abbreviated. As though the story had a prime time slot it had to fit. A certain increment of time.

Contemporary working mothers will enjoy this book very much.

I absolutely loved this book!

Packed full of wit, humour and laughs with characters and a storyline which will keep you hooked.

I understand that this is the first book the author has written. I certainly hope she is busy writing a follow up to 'Life After Coffee'.

Life After Coffee by Virginia Franken is an enjoyable read with a strong female lead. Franken captures the difficulties of being a working mom and sole bread winner along with the positive aspects as well. Compelling read with a believable, satisfying conclusion.

I was looking for something that would be a quick read, and I got a book I couldn't put down. Cutting humor but also the plain reality of the characters struggles hit so close to home. Funny, sad, and a good reminder that sometimes you have to make things happen. I will be looking for more to read by this author for sure!

Great book, which I really enjoyed reading. It had a lot of depth and made you think about what is important and life and how you spend your time. It kept me involved and I never wanted to put it down. I can't wait for the next novel!

Whether you are a career woman, mother, coffee-lover or, as the heroine of this fast-paced novel is, all three, this is a highly enjoyable and well-written story. The author does not pull punches but she manages to keep the tone light-hearted and the story surprising. A wonderful read!